One Chance, Potter
by PsychicFairy
Summary: PG for language. Take a peek into the love life of Lily Evans and James Potter, in their seventh year. Find out how James's "one chance" turned into the rest of their lives.


DISCLAIMER- I wish

This is a one-shot at a Lily/James romance. Please be gentle, as this is the second story with Lily and James, and the first one set in seventh year, when they got together. Soo... yeah. Please read and review.

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_            "Maybe you were too hard on the guy," _Regret in her mind said. Regret was that one voice that always sat in the back of your mind, allowing you to regret your actions as much as an hour afterward.

            _"Oh, be quiet. He would've ditched halfway through the date and you know it,"_ Determination, the voice that always contradicted Regret, even though Regret was right this time, said.

            _"But he seemed so heartbroken when you said no..."_

_            "So? He's looked heartbroken the last 2,321 times, too."_

_            "Fair point."_

_            "Anyway, think of it this way. Now you can study for that Charm  N.E.W.T. Today _is _your day to study for it."_

_            "Oh... you're right..."_

_            "I win."_

_            "But you have a 152% in that class anyway."_

_            "Oh."_

_            "He looked so heartbroken... very few boys are _willing _to go to Madam Puddifoot's."_

_            "But he'll ditch."_

_            "He deserves one chance."_

_            "I give up."_

_            "I win."_

_----_

While this argument was going on, Lily Evans was in her dormitory in Gryffindor, sitting on her bed in her pink pajama pants and white tanktop pajamas with a book open on her lap. The heading of the page was 'Wolfsbane', and Lily was raptly paying attention to the book.

            But once Regret won the argument, her mind was overtaken by that foul man again.

            "Bloody git," she muttered, thanking God that her roommates weren't in the room.

----

            "Did you know that poor Lily is _obsessed _with that Potter character?"

            "But she doesn't seem that smitten..."

            "Oh, you don't see her in our dorm. It's so cute..."

            "She keeps track of all the times he's asked her out in her homework scheduler."

            "It's almost scary."

            "Really now?"

            "Oh, I wish his little friend, Sirius Black, would ask _me _out..."

            "Wait... Potter is a _very_ eligible single man! He's Seeker for crying out loud! And you know how sexy Seeker muscles are!"

            "Don't even start. He's Lily's and you know it."

            "But she hasn't agreed to a single date, has she?"

            "No, but you know what's cute?"

            "What?"

            "She slips into first-name status oh-so-often. It's adorable."

            "Like what?"

            "Like 'Oh, that bloody James git is just _impossible_'."

            "And 'Look at him, fixing his hair over there'."

            "Then the classic 'I want to have wild monkey sex with James'."

            "And of course, 'His broom makes me so jealous, getting to be closer to his ass than I ever could'."

            "What?!"

            "Well, she hasn't said those last two yet."

            "But it's coming!"

            "Oh, get off it."

            "Truly it is. He always seems so determined to get her one way or the other."

            "Eventually, he'll get her."

            "Soon."

            "We hope."

----

            "Mate, you don't look too good," Sirius Black said to his best friend, James Potter. He was sitting in front of the fire in his favorite armchair and looked downtrodden.

            "Well, she's rejected me 2,322 times... should I give up?" James asked his friend.

            "No way, man. Think of Lily Evans like a really tough Quidditch Match."

            "How so?"

            "Well, eventually... despite all your hard work, you'll get screwed." (A/N- Don't tell me how lame this is. I'm a girl and I can't write these things well)

            There was a pause as Sirius's joke sunk in.

            "Dude, that's just wrong."

            "It's true! Eventually, you _shall _be screwed!"

            "Padfoot, just... just shut up."

            "Oh, _fine._ I tried." James simply hung his head.

----

            "Bloody git!" she muttered again and snapped her book shut. She stood up, Regret taking over her body as she pulled on a set of robes. She gathered a bit in the front and turned to her door, pushing it open and walking down the steps.

----

            Regret was doing a jig.

----

            "Listen, I'm going to bed, man," Sirius said to his friend, "You coming up?"

            "In a bit. I'll wait for the fire to die out." Sirius rolled his eyes and sighed.

            A creaking door leading to the girl's dormitories made Sirius turn around.

            "Good evening, Evans," Sirius said.

            "Shut up, Black," the seventeen-year-old said. She ignored him as he shrugged and walked up the stairs to the boy's dormitory, and sat in the chair next to James. He was still gazing into the fire and Lily brought her slender legs up into her chest and hugged them. "Potter, I have a question for you."

            "Shoot."

            "Why are you _constantly _chasing after me?" James looked at Lily.

----

            The voice called Calculation, that always thought about what you said before you say it, spoke in James's head.

            _"Don't say boobies, don't say boobies, don't say boobies."_

            Of course, James always ignored this voice.

----

            "Boobies," James said. Lily, shocked, stared at him for a moment.

----

            _"You _idiot_!!" _Regret yelled.

----

            Lily stood and took the step toward him, raising her hand. She smacked him with all her might and huffed, turning toward the steps. James put a hand to his cheek, then called after her,

            "Are we on for Valentine's day?" She stopped and turned, a hand on the door.

            "One chance, Potter. That's all. And you'd _better_ not ditch."

            "I won't!"

            "Just tell me where we're meeting and when."

            "I'll meet you right before the check-out for Hogsmeade, down here."

            "And how much time will you spend getting drunk with your little friends?"

            "Well, actually... I wanted to spend the whole time with you." This sentence kindof stunned Lily. She shook her head slightly and muttered,

            "Fine. Goodnight." She turned and turned the knob on the door.

            "Goodnight, Lily," he said. Her first name caused her to freeze for a moment, then shake her head and slam the door, walking upstairs.

----

            _"I'm proud of you, dear," _Regret said.

            _"I still say he will ditch."_

_            "But he said he'll be there the whole time. And has he ever lied?"_

_            "... No."_

_            "Precisely. I still win."_

----

            "That. Bloody. Potter," Lily muttered as she slammed the door to her dorm. Her roommates looked at eachother and said together,

            "Oh, little Lily is still in denial."

            "Shut up!" Lily yelled, pulling off her robes and sitting on her bed, pulling the hangings around her.

----

            A few minutes before the Valentine's Day Hogsmeade trip, Lily stood before the mirror in her dorm. She was brushing her hair, then fixed it up into a loose bun on her head. She was wearing a dark pink button-down shirt with sleeves that end at the elbows, and a dark grey skirt that was part of her Hogwarts uniform that ended at her knees. She stared at herself in the mirror, then took a step back, twirling a little and admiring herself.

            "Worriment of what you look like. A sure sign you like a guy," one of Lily's roommates said, walking in.

            "Shut up."

            "Whatever. Listen, James is waiting in the Common Room for you."

            "Alright, alright, I'm coming. Hey, are his little friends surrounding him?"

            "... No. He's alone. You'd better hurry up 'cuz they already left."

            "I'm coming!" Lily yelled, then picked up her purse and walking downstairs.

----

            _"Did you hear that? He's by himself!" _Guilt said, _"And you've been making him wait... shame on you."_

_            "Just shut up,"_ Determination said, _"who's to say he's even down there?"_

_            "Kellie doesn't lie."_

_            "Maybe this is some big master scheme that they set up. He's gonna ditch and go with Kellie. Just watch."_

----

            Lily opened the door and at first glance thought that Determination was right. But then her eyes were eclipsed from two hands that were strong from catching so many Snitches.

            "Guess who," a voice whispered in her ear.

            "Potter, get off me!" Lily yelled, pulling his hands off but smiling slightly. She turned and was prepared to glare at him, but in his hands was a small boquet of lilies and other assorted flowers. She gasped and gaped at the boquet. He was grinning very handsomely. Lily simply stared at him, shocked out of her mind. James took two lilies from the boquet and gently pushed her in the shoulder, making her turn. He put the lilies in her hair and then turned her back around. "I'll... I'll be right back... gotta drop these off in my dorm." With that, Lily turned and walked up the stairs.

----

            _"Flowers!" _Guilt yelled, _"Poor things, they need water!"_

            _"Just shut up."_

----

            Lily walked back down the steps and saw that James was still waiting. This shocked Lily, as she thought he would've ditched by now.

            "You coming, Lily?"

            "Fine, Potter. Let's get this over with," Lily said.

            "Honestly, Lily. Do you want to end this whole 'surname' thing? We're going on a date, after all."

            "Fine, fine. _James,"_ Lily said to James, rolling her eyes. James held out his arm and bent it for her to take. Lily stared at it for a moment, then shrugged, interlacing her arm with his. Then, together, they walked out of the Portrait Hole.

----

            They found a spot in Madam Puddifoot's shop, at the very table where their son would sit with his "girlfriend" in the distant future. Of course, they didn't know that. The small tea shop only had two other couples, and they were in a corner, so they won't be caught snogging. Madam Puddifoot came over to the two and looked at them.

            "What can I get you, dears?"

            "Two coffees," James said before Lily could say anything. "My treat." Lily blushed slightly and Madam Puddifoot smiled, turning to get coffee. The two didn't say anything for a moment, then Lily brought up the "Boobie" incident from last night.

            "So... why else do you chase after me beside my boobies?" she asked, and James looked embarrassed.

            "Why do you want to know?"

            "I'm not fishing for compliments, if that's what you're thinking. I'm just curious."

            "Alright, well... do you really wanna know?"

            "If I didn't, why would I ask?"

            "Alright... well... it's your laugh."

            "... My laugh?"

            "Yes. It's funny! I love your laugh, Lily. And it's so rare, too. That's what makes me love it, because I don't hear it much."

            "You're not kidding." James shook his head.

            "Comeon, just laugh."

            "I'm not gonna laugh."

            "Comeon, Lily!"

            "No!"

            Madam Puddifoot brought their coffee and Lily busied herself by adding some sugar. James sighed, then wracked his mind for a moment.

            "Okay, so you won't laugh, I'll _make _you laugh," James said in an almost threatening way. "What do you call a blonde dying her hair red?" When Lily didn't answer, he said, "Artificial intelligence." Lily's mouth twitched slightly, but she covered it by taking a sip of her coffee. "Okay, alright, I got another one. So a blond guy and a redhead girl were married and expecting a baby."

            "Oh, come on now. Just say it's a black-haired man and get it over with."

            "I would, except the hair is vital in the joke. So anyway, the lady started to go into labor, and the man got her to the hospital. He held her hand the whole time, and in the end there were two baby boys. The man turned to his wife and yelled, 'All right, who's the other father?!?'." This was too much. Lily began laughing at this joke and James started laughing because she was. A few moments of this passed, then Lily straightened from her bent laughing position, wiping her eyes.

            "That's... that's just..." Lily breathed a few times, then looked at James, chuckling a little. "My mum said that's what my father said when my sister and I were born..." Lily began to laugh again, and James joined her because it was just funny.

----

            They had drained four cups of coffee each by the time that they had had enough caffeine to last them a while, and had run out of jokes. So now James was concentrating on something else to like about Lily. It was actually hard work, but seince the conversation of family was the only thing they were saying, Lily's laughs might be far apart and few. James put a few coins on the table, then jumped up before Lily could stand, holding out a hand for her to take. Lily stared at it for a moment, then took it, standing.

            "Thank you, James," Lily said, taking his lead and walking outside. She didn't realize that she had not let go of his hand.

----

            "Do you really think it's haunted?"

            "Oh yeah. Totally. I even heard some ghosts fighting in there before."

            "No way..."

            "Yeah way. They were fighting. Finally one ghost threw a chair at the other ghost and they agreed to disagree," James said to Lily. James, unknowing to Lily, was actually telling the story of last week, when Moony transformed, and Padfoot and Moony got in a fight. Padfoot still has the chair-shaped bruise.

            Lily and James were standing in front of the Shrieking Shack, well, behind the fence. (A/N- Think movie) James had his arm around Lily's waist, and she was too awed by the Shrieking Shack to notice, or even smack him.

            "Have you ever been in there?" Lily asked.

            "No... But I want to," James lied. Lily didn't notice and was still staring at the shack. Then, a mighty wind gusted to the house and it groaned rather loudly. Lily squealed and buried her face in James's chest. James, kindof at shock about this, wrapped his arms around her waist. "What's your problem?"

            "Saw it move..."

            "It was probably just the wind."

            "Wind or ghost?"

            "... Right. Maybe it was a ghost."

            There was a pause for a moment, as Lily quaked silently in James's arms. She silently slid her hands from his chest to clasping behind his neck. Now that was shocking.

----

            _"Holy hell," _all the voices in James's head said at the same time.

----

            "Uh... Lily?"

            "Hm?"

            "Why did you agree to come with me to Madam Puddifoot's?" Lily, apparently a little scared from his question, looked at James.

            "Because you deserved a chance."

            "Why are you giving me a chance, then? Is it my overgrown ego you're always yelling at me for?"

            "No... If you must know, I think everyone deserves a chance."

            "Then why wait until now?" Lily hasn't noticed yet that James's face was steadily inching closer toward hers.

           "Just because only someone who _really_ wants to go out with a girl will _willingly _go to Madam Puddifoot's," Lily said. James chuckled softly and Lily had just now realized he was really, really close. She silently lifted her face and stared him in the eyes.

            They were mere centimeters apart when there was a great booming bark from behind a nearby tree. Lily screamed and shoved James away, trembling in her shoes.

            "Lily, what's wrong?" James asked, reaching out a hand to comfort her.

            "I'm terrified of dogs! Didn't I tell you when I was talking about my family? When I was 6, and then again when I was 9, I was attacked by a dog! I was in the hospital for a month and had stitches and a limp for a year! Didn't I tell you?!" Lily was practically shrieking. James's face drained, because he knew exactly who the dog was, and he would literally kill him in his sleep tonight.

            "I didn't know that, but it's probably a loveable little dog..."

            "Loveable?! That's exactly what the dogs that attacked me where! 'Family dogs' they said! 'Love to be cuddled' they said!! Yeah right!" she was definitely terrified now, clutching her heart and looking where the dog bark came from.

            Then, from the tree, a large black dog emerged, looking at Lily adorably. The dog jumped and ran toward her. She screamed as loud as she could and turned, sprinting from the Shrieking Shack.__

            James stomped in front of the dog and he looked up, as if wondering why the crap Lily ran off. James took a small silver whistle from his pocket and blew, making the dog yelp and run around James with his tail between his legs.

            "She's terrified of dogs!" James yelled over his yelping. The dog turned into Sirius Black and he stood up.

            "How was I supposed to know that?"

            "Maybe just not _doing _anything!" Sirius sighed in response and rolled his eyes. "I was gonna get to first base!"

            "Look, Prongs! I didn't know that!" Sirius said to James. James simply rolled his eyes as Sirius turned, walking the path back to Hogsmeade. James sighed and stood behind the fence, staring at the Shrieking Shack.

----

            _"It was a good try," _Regret said.

            _"Yeah, well, I told you. You should just give up on Lily and go with that Matilda girl. She seems into you," _Determination said.

            _"I think not. You really love this Lily."_

_            "That is true, but still. She thinks you're tactless."_

_            "Just tell her that you love her."_

_            "Yeah right. She'll smack your other cheek."_

_            "She was going to kiss you."_

_            "She was only going to do that because you were making the move."_

_            "Then you need to make it again."_

_            "What?"_

_            "Make the move again. She can't deny you twice. And also make sure that Sirius doesn't come."_

_            "Give up."_

_            "Whatever."_

----

            "I am going to kill you," James said to Sirius that night. The two were the only awake ones in their dormitory, with Peter sleeping and Remus in the shower.

            "I understand that. But understand that I didn't know."

            "Was the look of utmost _horror_ on her face a hint?!"

            On his four-poster, Peter snorted in his sleep and slept on. The shower in the bathroom shut off.

            "I'm sorry, mate. Can I make it up?"

            "Sure. Don't follow me for my next date!" With that, James pulled the hangings around his bed in anger and lied on his bed. But he had no intention of going to sleep.

----

            Once the breathing of Sirius, always the last one to fall asleep, changed from normal to slow, James silently pulled his hangings away and slipped his feet into his shoes. Tying them up, he pulled robes over his pajamas and silently slipped from the room.

----

            There was a pawing at her face and Lily yawned, groping around herself for her roommate's cat that liked her better.

            "What do you want, idiot?" Lily muttered to the cat, "You want into the Common Room?" Lily sat up and the cat jumped off her chest, pawing to the door and scratching it. Lily pulled on her robes and slipped her feet into her slippers, walking to the door and opening it for the cat. Then she walked after the kitty to let her into the Common Room, too.

----

            As Lily turned to go back to her dorm, someone grabbed her wrist. Panicking, she wished she hadn't left her wand on her bedstand and turned, trying to smack whoever had grabbed her. James Potter caught her hand, with a kind smirk on his face.

            "I think you've reached your weekly limit on slapping me, Lily." Lily, thankful it was dark, blushed and dropped her slapping hand, but did nothing to the hand on her wrist.

            "Potter, what are you doing up so late?"

            "I know that every night you let that cat into the Common Room."

            "Are you stalking me?"

            "Just a little fact I've picked up over my years of all-nighters pulled near exams..," he said. Lily stared at him for a moment.

            "Well, Potter, goodnight, then." Lily turned to go back up the steps, but then realized that his hand was still on her wrist. "Do you mind? I want to go back to bed."

            "I want a second chance, Lily."

            "A second chance?"

            "You kindof ran off on our date."

            "The dog scared me off... but that wasn't your fault."

            "No, I know it wasn't. But I have another hour to make up to you."

            "That's fine, Potter. Now that I'm scared that I'll run into dogs on our dates, I've decided to temporarily avoid you until future notice." She smirked and pulled her wrist out of his hand. He looked hurt for a moment, then stepped around Lily and put a hand on the door behind her and a hand on the railing. Lily also had one hand on the railing, the other hand at her side. "Potter, let me go to bed."

            "Not until you hear me out. Lily... I love you," James said, and Lily stared, her eyebrows shooting straight up into her bangs.

            "You can't be serious..."

            "Why else would I have been chasing after you for the past six years? Why else would I have been rejected 2,322 times?"

            "You've been keeping track too? Oh my God... it's true..." she whispered. She seemed to be disbelieving, and the moonlight streaking across her face showed confusion. To James's shock, he saw a tear slip down her cheek.

            "Lily?" he asked, wiping her tear away. She looked at him, tears brimming in her eyes.

            "I... just don't know, James..." she said, almost whispering, "I don't know what love feels like..."

            "Let me tell you..." James said, then leaned in so that his mouth was near her ear and he whispered, "Love is when you are willing to do anything and everything for your loved one, no matter how much you have to sacrifice of yourself, or anything, just to get her or him to smile." He pulled away from her, smiling. She let out a quiet wail and wrapped her arms around his neck, crying into his shoulder. James wrapped his arms around her waist.

----

            _"Let's try this again..."_

----

            Lily was sniffling now, and James lifted her face and wiped her eyes.

            "Don't cry, Lily," he said, beginning to inch closer to Lily. She laughed softly as James returned his hand to around her waist. "It doesn't really suit you..."

            "Oh, James...," Lily said softly, inching toward him. "James, I..."

            But before she could finish, James had covered her mouth with his, successfully beginning and ending a lot between them. This ended the rumors of Lily and Potter, and began the, sadly, few years that they would spend after Hogwarts together.

            But they didn't know that it would be only a few years yet. In their minds, the vision of Lily and James Potter seemed to last on forever.

            Lily's one chance for James Potter would last until their deaths.

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FINITO!!

Review, please.

July 7th, 12:33 AM


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